When it comes to housing university presidents on campus, Ohio University is the only public university to do so in the state.
OU President Roderick McDavis’ residence at 29 Park Place in Athens is the only on-campus housing for a university’s top administrator among all the public universities in Ohio, though it is also the largest of the residences owned by the universities.
But news that OU’s Board of Trustees is considering an offer from a donor to build or buy McDavis a new house, possibly off campus, has caused speculation that OU may soon join the ranks of public universities in Ohio that don’t house their presidents on campus.
“Deborah and I enjoy living on campus,” McDavis said. “We love being around students. It’s very easy for us to walk to events at Baker Center. It’s certainly very easy for me to come to the office.”
Of the 13 public universities in Ohio, nine own their presidents’ homes.
“There’s just a certain feeling of being on campus that you can’t replicate if you’re off campus, so we’ve enjoyed that for the past eight years,” McDavis said.
OU currently owns the largest university presidential residence in Ohio at 8,034 square feet. The smallest, at Shawnee State University, is 3,204 square feet.
Other university presidents who live off-campus still feel close to their institution, both through location and their interaction with the community.
“I think it works exceptionally well for us. We feel like we’re a part of the university,” said Miami University President David Hodge, who lives adjacent to campus. “It really helps the students to see that the president is really a part of the campus.”
The closeness of the home to campus also helps with facilitating events, Hodge added.
McDavis agreed that an on-campus residence isn’t crucial in that regard.
“From the standpoint of having to entertain … if we were living on or off campus, that wouldn’t change,” he said.
The University of Cincinnati’s president’s residence, valued at $2,565,000, is the most expensive university-owned residence in Ohio. Shawnee State University, the least expensive, is valued at $471,690. OU’s president’s residence is valued at $926,050.
Other public university presidents in Ohio have not lived on campus for many years.
“Our president works … most of the time more than 12 hours a day and spends a lot of time on campus,” said Jim Lynch, spokesman for Ohio State University. “The university residence is located off campus because the university foundation received a gift.”
Some Ohio presidents have never lived on campus, a facet many universities argue doesn’t have a negative effect.
“Our presidents have always lived off campus and they’ve always fulfilled their daily duties,” said Greg Hand, associate vice president of Public Relations at the University of Cincinnati. “We’re in the middle of the city, so he’s probably ten minutes from campus.”
Aside from OU, Miami University owns the closest presidential residence to campus, only 0.1 miles away, while the farthest away is Cleveland State University’s president’s house, which is 8.3 miles from the university.
The possibility of OU’s president no longer living on campus in the future follows a national trend of university presidents moving off campus.
“The placement of a presidential residence is more than anything today about history or about a legacy on many campuses,” said Paul Hassen, vice president of public affairs for the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. “(Today), the trend seems to be towards having presidential houses elsewhere.”
The job of being a university president has changed, Hassen said, adding that there are pros and cons of the president living on campus, and the decision ultimately depends on the institution, its history and the president’s duties.
“The job of a president has changed from one of being on campus to being the external face of the university,” Hassen said. “The job has changed, so the living relationship has changed.”
dd195710@ohiou.edu
